Puncheston ( or ) is a village,

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

and

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

, southwest

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It sits below the mountain known as Castlebythe (), one of the peaks in the

Preseli Mountains The Preseli Mountains (, ; or ), also known as the Preseli Hills, or just the Preselis, are a range of hills in western Wales, mostly within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and entirely within the county of Pembrokeshire. The range ...

, just outside the

Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Pembrokeshire Coast National Park () is a National Parks of England and Wales, national park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales. It was established as a National Park in 1952. It is one of the three National parks of Wales, the others ...

Parish history

A map of 1578 shows the parish as ''Castle Male'', presumably a phonetic spelling of the Welsh name by the English mapmaker.

Lewis's Lewis's is an online retailer and homeware brand. It was also a chain of British department stores that operated from 1856 to 2010. The owners of Lewis's went into administration several times, including in 1991. The first store, which ope ...

''Topographical Dictionary'' of 1844 gives 326 inhabitants (the 1849 edition gives 255) for the parish, which includes the village and a number of outlying residences and farms. Lewis surmises that the original name was ''Castell Mael'', deriving from an ancient encampment of which there are remains. A railway passed through the parish in the 19th and 20th centuries, with a halt at the village.

Community

The Community of Puncheston consists of the villages of Puncheston,

Henry's Moat Henry's Moat is a hamlet and parish in Pembrokeshire, Wales, in the community of Puncheston. It is southeast of Fishguard and northeast of Haverfordwest. The nearest railway station is Clarbeston Road to the south. It was in the ancient Hund ...

, Little Newcastle,

Castlebythe Castlebythe () is a village and civil parish, parish in Pembrokeshire, Wales, on the southern slopes of the Preseli Hills, 10 km south-east of Fishguard. The northern part of the parish is in the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Together w ...

, Morvil and Tufton. Henry's Moat Electoral Ward returns two councillors to

Pembrokeshire County Council Pembrokeshire County Council () is the local authority for the county of Pembrokeshire, one of the principal areas of Wales. History There have been two bodies called Pembrokeshire County Council. The first existed from 1889 until 1974, and th ...

, and Puncheston Ward four.

Education

Puncheston County Primary School is in the village.

Notable people

Bartholomew Roberts Bartholomew Roberts (17 May 1682 – 10 February 1722), born John Roberts, was a Welsh pirate who was, measured by vessels captured, the most successful pirate of the Golden Age of Piracy. During his piratical career, he took over 400 prize shi ...

(1682–1722), pirate, known as 'Black Bart' (), was born in Casnewydd Bach near Puncheston. * John Gambold (1711-1771), bishop of the

Unitas Fratrum The Moravian Church, or the Moravian Brethren ( or ), formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestant denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century and the original U ...

, was born in Puncheston, where his father was rector.

References

External links

Further historical information and sources on GENUKIPuncheston Community Council
{{authority control Villages in Pembrokeshire Communities in Pembrokeshire